Similar to other educators, I have typical questions about
standardized testing. I recognize that simply
asking these questions will not cause a disruption to standardized testing.

Is it necessary to continue testing ALL students
in particular grades across the entire province or could sample testing provide
similar results?

A teacher already informs the parents about
student progress (with much more detail than one exam can provide), so what is
the purpose of the standardized test?

An increasing amount of students are using
personally owned devices regularly for learning and demonstrating their
learning. Will contemporary standardized tests continue to demand students use
old technologies (paper/pen, CD, etc.)?

What are some strategies to help alleviate the increased
anxiety for students writing standardized tests?

What format will be used to test application of
learning?

Are there also changes for the high school
diploma exams (weighted 50% of grade) on the horizon?

I will offer an uncommon testing scenario to
stimulate discussion about disrupting standardized testing.

A middle school child was extremely excited to be nominated
to write an exam. The child prepared for
the exam individually and in discussion with a teacher at the school providing
mentorship. Preparation for the exam involved
practicing the competencies at school and engaging in some self-directed time
at home reviewing the related content.
The exam was scheduled on a non-instructional day. The parent dropped off the child at school
for the exam and the child was beyond excitement to have this opportunity to
write the exam. When the parent returned
to the school, two hours later, the child came beaming out of the school with a
grin ear-to-ear and proudly carrying a type written sheet. The child immediately read the letter that
was written as part of the exam process.

This is a true story about my child when he was nominated to write an
exam in order to receive a patrol award.
How often are kids asked to write a letter about themselves providing
evidence of their competencies as part of an exam? How often are kids this
excited about writing exams?

Saturday, March 23, 2013

When writing a keepsake letter to your child in the digital
age, is it important to pull out the ink pen and hand write the letter in
cursive writing or use a digital option?
This is a question I asked other parents engaging in a similar
task. Some thought it might be more
meaningful for the child to receive a written-by-hand letter. Imagine the child opening the letter years
later and saying, “Wow, this letter was written by mom” or “This is in mom’s
handwriting.” Some parents also believe it
needs to be hand written to prove the authenticity of the author. In contrast, other parents wondered if the
child would even be able to read their handwriting. I look at my own handwriting and I can barely
read it! Would a child get so frustrated
trying to decipher and read the handwriting and the letter would not get
completely read or the message would be lost?

So, I asked my child – “Would you prefer to receive a letter
from your mom written-by-hand in cursive writing or in digital format? “ With
no hesitation, the response was DIGITAL.
The following reasons were provided for selecting a digital letter versus
handwritten letter:

-Looks like you put more time and effort into it

-Easier to read

-You can send the file to me right away

-You could embed media into the file so it’s not
just words

-The content of the letter is what makes it “written
by mom” not the handwriting and not the signature at the bottom.

Why would you choose digital or handwritten format to write a keepsake letter?